Mama Bird
by maregnbue
Summary: When Anna returns an eagle egg she had found, Elsa follows her sister's antics because the egg isn't the only thing likely to get hurt.


It was a beautiful summer day. Anna and Elsa were exploring together in the woods. They collected rocks of all kinds and placed them in buckets. "Look at this one, Anna," Elsa was holding one in her palm. "I can't tell if it's blue or purple."

Anna observed the rock her sister had. "It looks blue to me," she said. "With a tint of purple."

"Really?"

"Yeah, you should keep that one!"

"Okay," Elsa dropped it in her bucket. "Did you find any interesting ones?"

"Sort of," Anna replied. "I found one that's shaped like an arrow." She stopped walking when something caught her eye. "Look, Elsa!" She gasped.

Elsa stood beside the younger girl, curious. "What is it?"

"It's an eagle egg!" Anna clarified, picking up the egg from the ground and examining it.

"Careful," Elsa warned gently.

"It's not dangerous," Anna chuckled.

"I know. But it's delicate."

"I'm being careful. I wonder where it came from…"

Elsa gazed up at the tree towering in front of them. "Probably from up there. I think I see a nest."

"You poor thing," Anna was busy tending to the egg. "You must've fallen from your home. That's okay. I fall all the time."

"C'mon," Elsa sighed, walking ahead of her sister. "Leave the egg be."

"I can't take it home?" Anna asked, pouting.

"It would be best if you didn't."

"Why not?"

"Well," Elsa explained. "Eagles are a very protective species. I'm sure their mother will find them."

"Okay," Anna sighed, sadly looking at the unhatched egg. But she didn't place it back down. When Elsa wasn't looking, she gently tucked the egg in the bucket and followed her sister home.

Back at the castle, she sat in the library with the egg on her lap. "How to raise an eagle egg…" she read from the cover of a book. She opened it to learn more about the egg.

Anna felt bad that she didn't listen to Elsa. She knew her sister was right, but she had a love for animals ever since she was a little girl. She remembered when she was five, she wanted her own pet shop. The little girl would make friends with all the animals. She fed the ducks, she cared for the horses, and sometimes she took stray cats home. Of course, her mother and father would tell her to leave the cats outside. She remembered this one time she found a bird with a broken wing. Once the bird healed, it flew about the castle and the maids went berserk.

Anna chuckled at the memory and kissed the eagle egg. "Hopefully you won't be like that," she giggled. "We don't want to give Gerda another heart attack."

"Anna, are you in here?" A familiar voice called.

Anna panicked. Elsa couldn't know about the eagle egg! Without a second thought, she shoved the egg behind her back.

When Elsa saw Anna with her hands behind her back, she immediately knew something was fishy. "What are you doing?"

"Nothing," Anna replied.

"Anna," Elsa chuckled and crossed her arms. "C'mon. Fess up."

Anna sighed. Knowing that she was caught and she couldn't lie, she revealed the egg. "Sorry, sis. I had too."

"Love," the blonde gently said. "You know you can't keep it. Like I said, eagles are very protective over their young."

"Yeah, I know," Anna sighed.

"If you want, you could give it to the animal shelter," Elsa offered, picking up the books and placing them back on the shelves. "But you can't go back to the woods alone."

The redhead sighed again, feeling quite penitent for not growing out of her childhood phase. "I know, Elsa. I'm sorry."

Elsa turned to Anna, smiling. "It's okay, sweetheart. I love you. You have such a caring, warm heart." Before leaving she kissed Anna's forehead.

Anna gazed down at the egg as she listened to her sister's footsteps fade away. She thought for a moment. She couldn't let random strangers raise the eagle egg. She knew that it needed its mama. Anna felt bad not listening to Elsa again, so she had to execute her plan quickly.

The princess found the tree where the egg had come from. Without a second thought, she climbed up and found the eagle nest. "Here you are little one," Anna said sadly. "You're better off with your bird mom."

She suddenly looked down and gasped. She didn't realize how high up the nest was. "Did the tree grow taller since the last time I was here? Nah it'll be fine…"

 _SQUAWK!!_

Anna looked up. An eagle was circling the tree. It seemed to be distressed. "Or not. There's mama bird!" She decided not to panic. She'd get down eventually. _Besides_ , Anna thought, _I can't get in trouble for sneaking away when I'm up here._

"Anna you're in so much trouble!"

The princess closed her eyes and her mouth went straight. _Spoke too soon again, stupid._

There was Elsa standing on the ground below, looking more worried than angry. She willingly climbed up the tree and joined her sister on the tree limb. "How did you find me up here?" Anna asked.

"Well it wasn't too hard," Elsa retorted. "I just thought to myself, _what would Anna do_ , and here we are."

"Nice one, sis."

"Thank you."

 _SQUAWK!!_

Anna looked up at the eagle through the branches. It was lower than before, looking ready to attack. Elsa saw the eagle and her eyes widened.

Before either sister could take another breath, something cracking could be heard from the nest. Anna looked at the egg and gasped. It was hatching! Finally free of the shell, the baby bird was chirping loudly. Then the eagle calmed down and perched by the nest to tend to her young.

The sisters smiled warmly. For a moment, they watched the two birds in awe. Elsa reached for her sister's hand and squeezed it. "Ready to say goodbye, Anna?"

Anna sighed. "Not really. But here it goes. Goodbye, little one. I hope you have a wonderful life. Eat plenty of rats and hopefully one day you'll have babies too." After biding her goodbyes, the sisters made their way back down.

Now safely on the ground, they hugged. "Thanks, Elsa. I can't believe you risked your life climbing that tree to get me."

"Of course I did. I'm kind of like _your_ mama bird," Elsa chuckled. "I'd do anything to protect you."

"So, I'm not in trouble?" Anna asked.

"Oh no you're in trouble."

The sisters just laughed and walked home hand in hand.


End file.
